Easterlings (The Lord of the Rings)
. Thousands of Easterlings would marsch through the Black Gate of Mordor and enter the Black Land every day.]]The Easterlings from Rhûn are Men who lives in the east of Middle-earth, and are enemies of the Free Peoples. Their Kings and Queens are allies of Sauron. Most Easterlings were around average human height. However, there were also said to be a different type of Easterlings, who were broad, short, and bearded like Dwarves. Easterlings are described in David Day's Bestiary and in The Silmarillion as swarthy and bearded, implying a West-Asia-reflective people. In the Lord of the Rings, they are described as being sallow skinned (yellowed skin tone) and slant eyed, implying an East or Central Asian people. But whatever the description, they are always reflective of many different oriental cultures. They were a people with dark toning of the iris colors (eye colors such as green and brown) in their eyes, and black hair that was cut short on men and shoulder-length on women. The Easterlings of the First Age and those of the Second and Third Ages may have not been a related people, as those of the first may have simply come from the then-unknown lands east of the blue mountains, and could have had more relation to the Dunlednings than the later Balchoth and Wainriders. History Easterlings of the First Age During the First Age, the term was applied to the sons of Bor and Ulfang, or the Swarthy Men, who came into Beleriand much later than the Edain, and who were for a part secretly in league with Morgoth. Sons of Bor Bor was a leader of Men who came into Lothlann, in Beleriand, during the FA 463. His sons were Borlach, Borlad, and Borthand. Bor was welcomed by Maedhros, who gave him and his followers land north and south of the March of Maedhros. Bor and his sons swore allegiance to Maedhros, and remained faithful, though he was told by Morgoth to betray the banner of Caranthir. All of them were wiped out during the Nirnaeth Arnoediad (Battle of Unnumbered Tears). Sons of Ulfang "the Black" Ulfang also came in Lothlann, Beleriand, in 463, shortly after Bor. He was the father of Ulfast, Ulwarth, and Uldor "the Accursed". Ulfang was welcomed by the sons of Fëanor, and he and his sons swore allegiance to Caranthir. They were given lands to dwell in the north and south of the March of Maedhros. Ulfang and his sons were secretly in the employ of Morgoth, and betrayed the Eldar and Edain during the Nirnaeth Arnoediad in what is now known as the Treachery of Men. Rule in Hithlum After Nirnaeth Arnoediad at the bidding of Morgoth, the Easterlings invaded Hithlum. They spread throughout the wide lands plundering, destroying, and killing its inhabitants. The Eldar of Hithlum were able to escape from the invaders by taking refuge in the southern mountains that later the Easterlings avoided out of fear of the Elves. The Easterlings soon withdrew northwards and apparently settled. However, the Easterlings were betrayed by their lord Morgoth, and locked solely in Hithlum and denied the rich lands of the Beleriand that they so desired. Here the Easterlings governed with cruelty, robbing, stealing, and enslaving the remaining Men of Hithlum, who called the Easterlings the " Incomers". They took away the young and the able bodied and sometimes young women to be wives; the most widely known being Aerin of whom Brodda took to produce his heir. Despite these evil deeds, they did not take Morwen nor her house from her for they feared her and believed her to be a witch and so her son, Túrin Turambar had time to escape to Doriath. Tuor Turambar, the cousin of Túrin was also enslaved in Hithlum by the Easterlings but he was able to escape and evaded them by living as an outlaw, until he was contacted by the Vala Ulmo and went to Gondolin. The Easterlings ruled effectively in Hithlum as vassals of Morgoth from FA 473 to FA 583. After the War of Wrath, those that survived fled back over the Blue Mountains (Ered Luin) to Eriador and beyond. Easterlings of the Third and Fourth Ages During the Third Age, the term was applied to those Men living beyond the Sea of Rhûn, who were usually allied with Sauron (for their leader was the second greatest of the Nazgûl, Khamûl the Easterling) and frequently attacked Gondor at Khamûl's master (Sauron's) biddings. However, Sauron's defeat at the end of the War of the Last Alliance diminished his presence for over one thousand years, and any territorial ambition was left to them alone. In TA 490 an Easterling army of 100,000 Easterlings invaded Gondor, passing through Dagorlad and starting a series of wars that lasted sixty years until they were finally defeated in TA 550 by Turambar, the ninth King of Gondor. Afterwards, Gondor subdued them and took from them a large area of land between the Kingdom of Rhovanion and Mordor including the Sea of Rhûn. Gondor held on to these territories for a few hundred years but slowly began to lose them over time, and the Easterlings once again initiated warfare. In TA 1248 they once again clashed with Gondor in a series of skirmishes but were still not powerful or organized enough to stand against Gondor’s power. Though defeated the Easterlings would not have to wait long, for Gondor soon fell into decline and civil war, Kin-strife . Afterwards, the Easterling tribes remained peaceful for the most part until TA 1800 when they were again powerful enough to attack the west. Wainriders The Wainriders were a confederation of Easterling and Southron tribes who were united by their hate of Gondor, fueled by the Dark Lord Sauron. Following the Great Plague which weakened Gondor, they started their attacks in TA 1856, defeating the Gondorian army and killing King Narmacil II. They rode in great chariots (which gave them their name), and raided the lands of Rhovanion, destroying or enslaving its people. Gondor gradually lost all of its possessions east of Anduin to them. The thirtieth king of Gondor, Calimehtar son of Narmacil, defeated the Wainriders at the Field of Celebrant, buying some rest for his land. However the Wainriders struck back in TA 1944, allying themselves with the Haradrim of Near Harad and the Variags of Khand. They managed to kill king Ondoher and all his heirs, but instead of riding on to Minas Anor and taking the city, they paused to celebrate. Meanwhile, general Eärnil of Gondor's southern army rode north to defend his king, but he came too late to rescue Ondoher, but he did manage to annihilate the Wainriders. Eärnil was crowned king. After this defeat the might of the Wainriders was broken, and they retreated east. They still held Rhovanion, but never troubled Gondor again until the War of the Ring. Balchoth The Balchoth were a fierce race of Easterlings, who attacked Gondor while under orders of Dol Guldur. In TA 2510 they overran the plains of Calenardhon and almost destroyed the army of the Ruling Steward Cirion, but were defeated by the Éothéod under Eorl the Young. Like the Wainriders they rode in chariots and wagons, and they may have been descendants of these people. The War of the Ring, the Fourth Age and the Reunited Eastern Kingdoms of Rhûn, Khand and Far Harad During the War of the Ring at end of the Third Age, the Easterlings joined with the forces of Mordor participating in the Northern battles that nearly defeated the Elves of Mirkwood, the Men of Dale, and the Dwarves of the Lonely Mountain (Erebor). On March 17 TA 3019, over 200,000 Easterlings of Rhûn attacked the city state of Dale and the Dwarven fortress of the Lonely Mountain (Erebor) in north-eastern Rhovanion, resulting in the Battle of Dale, the greatest battle in the north and the second greatest battle of the War of the Ring. King Brand of Dale and King Dáin II Ironfoot of Erebor led an combined army of 50,000 Dwarves and Men of Dale to defend Dale and Erebor. It was the bloodiest battle in the north, with nearby 130,000 casualties. Despite being on the losing side in the War of the Ring, the Easterlings still continued to remain a threat throughout the early Fourth Age but were finally subdued in a series of campaigns led by Elessar. With some of their lands annexed to the Reunited Kingdom of Gondor, Rhovanion and Arnor, it is presumed that there were no more major invasions to threaten the peace. It is not known whether these men mixed with their former enemies and learned to live in peace or were simply subjugated tributaries. However, by the Fourth Age Rhûn had emerged as an recognized superpower. In FA 3600 the Reunited Eastern Kingdoms of Rhûn, Khand and Far Harad was formed, rising as one of the world's two recognized global superpowers along with the Reunited Kingdom of Gondor, Rhovanion and Arnor. Rhûn had by that time completely recovered from the casualties it suffered during the War of the Ring, as the Easterlings now have an army of 500,000 Easterlings, far more than those who fought in the Battle of Dale. After the Reunited Eastern Kingdoms of Rhûn, Khand and Far Harad was formed, the combined forces of Rhûn, Khand and far Harad became the largest single military force in the world with over 2,500,000 Easterlings, Variags and Haradrim. Variags The Variags (in our time, this is another name for the Varangians) were from Khand, and they first appeared in the West in 1944 of the Third Age, fighting alongside the Wainriders. They later appeared during the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. Tolkien wrote little to nothing about the Variags and Khand; what information we have about them is speculative. After the War of the Ring concluded and the Fourth Age passed by, the Variags of Khand together with the Easterlings of Rhûn and the Haradrim of Far Harad formed the Reunited Eastern Kingdoms of Rhûn, Khand and Far Harad in FA 3600. Weapons Uniforms, shields, and future Non-Canonical military units Category:Easterlings (The Lord of the Rings)